Strategy guide

Strategy guides are instruction books that contain hints or complete solutions to specific video games.

In cases of exceptionally popular game titles, guides may be sold through more mainstream publication channels, such as bookstores or even newsstands.

For example, in January 2001, Prima published a guide (ISBN 0-7615-3125-4) for the Dreamcast version of Half-Life, which was canceled late in development when Sega discontinued the console.

Video-sharing sites such as YouTube have given rise to video walkthroughs using programs such as Fraps, which allows players to more easily mirror the strategies being described.

These reasons may include resolving copyright issues and real world trading that may be found on unofficial wikis.

[3] The increasing availability of free online FAQs and walkthroughs has taken away some of the demand for commercial strategy guides, although there is still a large market for them.

Print guides often feature extensive picture-by-picture walkthroughs, maps, and game art, none of which is possible in the plain-text works hosted by prominent sites such as GameFAQs.

In 2000, the Final Fantasy IX Official Strategy Guide was published by BradyGames, but much of the information was contained on Square's PlayOnline website.